Construction on Seattle's RapidRide J Line has passed the halfway mark, according to the Seattle Department of Transportation, as crews continue reshaping the corridor linking Downtown, South Lake Union, Eastlake and the University District. The project will give Seattle its first fully electric RapidRide fleet, running on a route that replaces King County Metro's heavily used Route 70.
Seattle Department of Transportation shared the construction update in a Facebook post Thursday, noting that repaving is underway in Eastlake, the U District and South Lake Union. The work includes new sidewalks, protected bike lanes, ADA-compliant curb ramps, upgraded traffic signals, and bus stations equipped with real-time arrival information, per the same post. SDOT also says the freshly paved streets will mean smoother travel for drivers once construction wraps.
A Route With Deep Roots and a Shortened Reach
The RapidRide J Line will directly replace Route 70, one of Seattle's highest-ridership transit corridors and a route heavily used by commuters and University of Washington students, according to the SDOT Blog. Transit planners originally designed the line in 2017 to extend north to Roosevelt Station, but SDOT truncated the northern terminus to the U District Station in 2020 as project cost estimates climbed, The Urbanist reports. That scope change preserved the line's connection to high-density transit hubs while keeping the project financially viable.
Seattle and King County officials broke ground on the $128 million project in October 2024, following seven years of planning, environmental review and community outreach, according to The Urbanist. SDOT and King County Metro plan to launch full passenger service in 2027, once the two-year construction window for repaving and utility work concludes, per reporting from The Daily UW.
Faster Buses, Protected Lanes and a Buried Water Main
Once running, RapidRide J Line buses will operate at 7-to-8-minute frequencies using electric trolleybuses configured to carry roughly 50 seated and 30 standing passengers, The Daily UW reports. The corridor redesign carves out 2.3 miles of exclusive bus-only lanes and 3.7 lane-miles of protected bike facilities, alongside upgraded traffic signal hardware at 33 intersections, according to Seattle Transit Blog.
Those bike lanes respond to real demand: Cascade Bicycle Club recorded roughly 1,700 daily bicycle crossings over the University Bridge before construction began, making it Seattle's second-busiest cycling corridor, The Urbanist notes. SDOT's own update adds that the finished corridor will include more than 180 new trees and upgraded sidewalks designed to give people walking and rolling greater separation from traffic. New curb ramps built into the project are also meant to benefit people with disabilities, while improved crosswalks are intended to make the surrounding neighborhoods safer for families, older adults and people with disabilities, per SDOT's post.
Construction has also included a substantial utility overhaul. Crews installed a new 9,000-foot water main as part of the work, according to SDOT, part of a broader $28 million commitment from Seattle Public Utilities to replace aging underground infrastructure. Seattle Transit Blog reports that pairing utility replacement with street repaving prevents the city from having to tear up newly paved streets again in the near future.
Federal Money, Local Levies and Lingering Pushback
The project's largest single funding source is a $64.2 million Small Starts grant awarded by the Federal Transit Administration under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in January 2024. Local dollars round out the budget, with $43 million coming from Seattle's voter-approved transportation levy and $28 million from Seattle Public Utilities, per Seattle Transit Blog's February reporting.
Not everyone along the corridor is satisfied with the tradeoffs. The project permanently removes most curbside parking along Eastlake Avenue E, and business owners there have sustained their opposition, reporting lost customer foot traffic during construction, according to KIRO Newsradio. Those concerns date back to the project's initial design phases, when merchants first raised alarms about losing parking availability along the avenue.
For now, SDOT's Thursday update frames the project as more than halfway complete, with faster, more frequent and more reliable transit service promised once the RapidRide J Line begins carrying passengers in 2027.
